


Demon Comfort

by NikaylaSarae



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Burning, Demon!AU, Demon!Logan, Freezing, Hazing Talk, Manipulation, Near Death Experiences
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-11
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:28:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28001649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NikaylaSarae/pseuds/NikaylaSarae
Summary: Lurking under a Human’s bed should be downright dull for a Demon of Logan’s rank. And yet…he can’t help but be intrigued by his human charge.
Comments: 17
Kudos: 102





	1. ICE

**Author's Note:**

> Cross-posted to my Tumblr account @stillebesat.
> 
> December Drabbles Day 10

It wasn’t the most glorious of jobs. Logan wouldn’t be the first demon to admit it. Lurking under a human’s bed was mundane at best and outright mind numbing at worst. 

They were so distracted with their technology these days, so overloaded with sensory input from a variety of sources that most humans would barely twitch if their demon companion made themselves known. 

No. Beyond using this as an exercise in learning how to terrorize the youngest of human offspring, ones whose minds were much more easy to scare because of their simplistic fears, the only other time a demon was assigned to this task was...well as punishment. 

And unfortunately for Logan, who had had a good three millennia of experience under his wings...this was definitely a punishment. To be forced back into lurking under a human’s bed like an overgrown dust bunny.

He knew this sentence was meant to break him. To drive him crazy from how extremely dull it would get as soon as the child grew old enough to stop fearing the _monster under their bed_.

Except it wasn’t. Logan allowed a small smile to play upon his lips, tail swishing back and forth. Because apparently his superiors _could_ make mistakes. After all, he’d been told he would be condemned to lurking underneath a _child’s_ bed.

Instead, he’d found himself underneath a near-adult’s. One who would soon be leaving his childhood home to pursue an education elsewhere and learn to navigate the world of being an adult on his own. 

It had turned out to be a far more interesting punishment than Logan had expected. The near-adults were known to his kind to often be in a stage of tumultuous growth, easy to influence when their heads were filled to the brim with a variety of doubts and fears that hovered like a dark storm cloud above them. A tangle of ever shifting and writhing threads that Logan had learned to love, in the past half year on earth he’d been here, to tease apart and influence so he could better understand what spurred this near-adult through life.

Virgil, the charge he’d been assigned to, truly was a diamond in the rough compared to the other near-adults he’d glimpsed while stuck here. The storm cloud over his head so tangled, that Logan could easily play with the threads for hours, teasing through them, seeing how each dark thought influenced the human as he tossed and turned on the thin mattress over his head each night.

Only Virgil wasn’t currently tossing and turning over his head. 

Logan silently exhaled, his breath misting in front of him as his leathery wings twitched in irritation. He ran his fingers over his horns, trying and failing to focus on the Alice in Wonderland book that his charge had left on the floor this morning as he listened to the human shiver on the couch in the living room on the other side of the wall. 

He hadn’t often had the opportunity to study humans when their planet frosted over since his particular type of demon preferred the warmer climates of Earth that were similar to his native inner ring of Hell. Had had very little interest in ever doing so. 

But Logan’s current human had chosen to move away from the heat and the shining sun when he ‘left the nest’ as his fellow demons termed it. 

Further north than Logan would have preferred. But despite hours upon hours of tugging and twisting at the quivering thoughts in Virgil’s mind... this had been one decision he hadn’t managed to turn to his favor. 

No, Virgil had wanted a new start far away from his previous life, far far away from everyone he knew, and he’d decided that heading to a colder climate was the best course of action.

Now Logan was definitely regretting not fighting with those slippery thoughts harder. But how could he, or the human, have known that a freak cold snap would leave the state frozen in near arctic conditions? 

It was cold enough outside of the four walls of the first floor apartment that humans were dying if they ventured out for longer than a few minutes.

Inside? It was nearly as bad because the apartment had been without power and therefore without its ability to heat the place for the past seventy-two hours. 

His charge, his stubbornly stubborn, but very poor charge had to be the only human left in the entire complex. The last of the other residents having left over forty-eight hours ago to safer and warmer options once it became clear that the power couldn’t be fixed until the weather warmed.

If it ever warmed. 

Logan shut the book, having not read a single word on the page for the past hour. He rested his head on the cover, wings trembling as he fought to keep his body temperature lower so that no steam would come off his body and alert his charge to his presence.

This would have been much easier if he could just come out from under the bed and take Virgil somewhere warmer. He had wings did he not? He could fly them anywhere--but no.

Logan grimaced, running his tongue over his fangs. Demons and Humans weren’t supposed to mingle unless a Human summoned them. 

And until that unlikely event happened. 

Virgil couldn’t know he was there. 

Which was a pity. Even if he hadn’t had his wings to fly them away, his physical manifestation would have done much in his favor in convincing his charge to leave this frozen wasteland.

Instead, Logan had fought for hours with the tangles in Virgil’s mind, pulling at all the proper strings to get him to leave---and yet again had irritatingly lost to his charge.

There was a reason why he hadn’t minded being stuck with Virgil for the foreseeable future and it was because his, dare he say it? Smart and brilliant human could bring up excellent, if befuddling at times, points to his silent arguments that Logan couldn’t easily manipulate in his favor. 

His charge’s finances were borderline nonexistent. Which meant he couldn’t afford to fly back home. And Virgil didn’t own a car so he couldn’t drive anywhere. The buses weren’t running either because of the cold. Nor could he afford to stay in a hotel. 

And most unfortunately, moving away from everyone he knew and Virgil’s naturally reclusive nature meant that his charge had no friends or even acquaintances to go live with within a thousand miles while his obnoxiously loud, rude, and inconsiderate roommates had vanished without so much as checking in with him to make sure he had a place to go to. 

No. Logan growled under his breath, tail tapping against the floor. For all intents and purposes. Virgil was on his own to survive this cold snap--

He jerked his head up, glancing to the wall with a frown at the sudden silence coming from the other room.

That wasn’t right.

Automatically Logan reached out for the sluggish tangle of thoughts that Virgil always had twisting about his head.

Nothing. 

Logan blinked. That definitely wasn’t right. He pushed up onto his elbows, barely remembering to duck his head to avoid piercing the mattress above with his horns.

Virgil couldn’t have left. Not in this weather. He was too cautious for that. Logan would have heard the door slam at least which meant that Virgil was still here and if he was still here he should be able to reach those tangled thoughts even while his charge slept unless Virgil had--had----

 _“No.”_ Logan rolled out from under the bed, chest throbbing uncomfortably as he sprang to his feet and burst through the bedroom door into the living room. His wings spread wide as he grabbed the motionless figure from his cocoon of blankets on the couch, wincing at the frozen chill that burned his skin as he cradled the nearly blue human in his arms. His wings snapped shut around the near-adult to insulate him from the cold, his wings taking on a red glow as allowed his inner fire to burn hotter to get heat into his charge’s frozen body. 

He should have tried harder to get him to leave! Especially when the power had gone out. He shouldn’t have let--“Virgil.” Logan shook his charge, using the back of his hand to brush the purple bangs from out of the human’s eyes. “ ** _VIRGIL._ ** **”**

The human suddenly gasped, twitching in Logan’s arms as his glazed eyes fluttered open, meeting Logan’s own slitted ones for a heart stopping second before they closed. The human twisted, pressing his frozen face into Logan’s side, violently trembling. “C-c-co-o-ld.” He mumbled.

 _Alive._ The tightness in his chest eased as Logan shoved to his feet, holding Virgil close like a mother cradling her demon spawn as he moved back to his charge’s bedroom where he would be able to use his hellfire in the smaller space more effectively to ensure the young human would survive. “Not for long, I promise you that.” 

It wasn’t proper, he shouldn’t have come out and revealed himself like this in the first place without taking on a human disguise. He shouldn’t have cared if Virgil perished. He should have just gone back to Hell to say that his sentence had ended with the death of his charge instead of trying to save him--but propriety could go screw itself. 

Virgil was far too interesting of a human to lose to something as stupid as freezing to death. 

“Wh-who--y-y-y-you?” Virgil managed to ask through chattering teeth as Logan entered his--well he supposed it was technically their room since Logan lived there too. 

“A--” Well he wasn’t really a friend now was he? Demons and Humans couldn’t be friends. And Logan’s actions in toying with the human’s mind would hardly be deemed acceptable in most human social circles he was sure. “A Guardian.” He said, settling on that particular term with a twitch of his tail as he climbed onto the bed, adjusting his wings to ensure that the heat radiating off of him remained focused on keeping Virgil warm. 

Technically he was looking out for Virgil’s well-being, even if he hadn’t taken such direct action in doing so before this moment. 

The human sighed, eyes fluttering again as his arms shifted, pressing frozen fingers into Logan’s side. “An--An-Angel?”  
Logan snorted, shaking his head as he carefully ran his clawed fingers through the human’s hair. “Hardly, You may call me…” He took a breath, it was another rule he shouldn’t break, but he’d already broken at least a dozen already. Why not add a lucky thirteenth to the list? “Logan.”

Odds were the human wasn’t mentally cognizant enough for it to do any harm. If luck was on his side, Virgil would think this whole thing a dream once he really woke up. 

“Lo.” Virgil breathed, his trembling form relaxing as the blue tinge to his skin faded. “Th-th-thanks.” 

Logan swallowed, his hearts stuttering in his chest at the unexpected nickname. Mentally he shook his head, settling them into a more comfortable position where he would be able to leave the human as soon as his body temperature returned to a satisfactory level. 

It was nothing. _Nothing._ The human probably just couldn’t say his whole name without stuttering. That was it. He’d be back under the bed before Virgil woke and the human would think the whole thing a dream. So this...this was nothing. Everything would return to normal on the morrow where Logan would lurk under the bed and the near-adult would remain unaware of just exactly how his room was managing to stay warmer than the rest of the apartment. 

And yet. 

“You’re welcome.” He whispered, unable to stop running his claws through Virgil’s hair as his shuddering breaths evened out into the steady rhythm of sleep; for once not thinking about picking at the tangle of thoughts faintly twisting above the human’s head.


	2. HEAT

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> December Drabbles Day 12

The Devil’s hour. 

It had been ages since Logan had felt the need to venture out into the human world at three in the morning, yet here he was out in the middle of the bloody night, stalking through the corridors of the local university in search of his charge.

Logan tsked, head swiveling back and forth, his nostrils flared out in hopes of catching the human’s scent. 

His fellow demons wouldn’t ever be caught out in the open like this. Exposed without a human disguise or at least an active charm to keep himself from being noticed. 

Logan narrowed his eyes, his leathery wings clamping tight against his back as he paused in the shadows. No, those in his position would be quite content hanging out under their charge’s bed, celebrating a night ‘off duty’ from pulling at the tangled thoughts and worries that hung over their human’s head like a stormy rain cloud. 

His fellow demons didn’t... _care_ … about their charges the way Logan did. 

Though that wasn’t surprising. None of his fellow Demons had broken the rules. None of them had rushed out of hiding to save their human from certain death via hypothermia in that cold snap a little over a month ago. So of course...he felt a bit more...protective, over his human than the others ever would. 

Logan ran a hand over his horns in a self soothing gesture as he studied the empty hallways, searching for any signs that his charge had been there.

Not that Virgil remembered that night. Beyond an increased interest in the paranormal and cryptids...the human seemed to have had no ill effects from his encounter with a demon. 

A good thing, Logan kept telling himself, despite how his hearts seemed to ache whenever he thought about how Virgil had called him Lo. Had...had thanked him--He abruptly shook his head. Stop it! He was wasting time. The night wouldn’t last forever after all and he needed to track down Virgil. 

The others had told him he shouldn’t worry in this sort of situation. That it was common for the near-adults to stay out all night with their peers once they’d left their parent’s domains. ‘Partying’ it was called. Highly favored over learning, which was a pity in his opinion. With all the knowledge available at their fingertips, the near-adults should be focused on obtaining that instead of dulling their minds with frivolous liquids and loud music. 

Only Virgil Hawkins wasn’t like his peers. 

Logan growled under his breath, his tail thrashing as he ventured deeper into the old engineering building with its exposed pipes and ductwork hanging from the ceiling. 

No, with the large stormcloud of fears, anxiety, and doubt that hung over the young human’s head, Logan knew that Virgil wouldn’t be the type to ‘party all night.’ Especially when he knew his near-adult had a sizeable mid-term exam in seven hours that he’d been planning to study for--

Logan froze as a faint scream reached his pointed ears. 

_Virgil._

His hearts jumped into his throat as Logan broke into a run, darting to a stairwell. His wings half spread to aid him as he dove down two flights of stairs to the basement, a place that looked to be more utilitarian with generators, water heaters, and furnaces than for use in the studies that the humans partook in in other areas of this building.

Logan paused there in a half crouch, pointed tail curling around him as he listened---

_There._

Another hoarse scream, followed by faint banging guided him to a small metal door that appeared to have no handle on his side, though there was a crack along the bottom where Logan could see a shadow moving and hear--

“GUYS! LET. ME. OUT! PLEASE!! HELP!” 

_Virgil._

A guttural roar rumbled in Logan’s chest, his wings mantling over him as he pressed clawed fingers against the door, the metal warm to his heat accustomed hands. 

If he thought it was warm to his touch--he inhaled sharply, biting down on his forked tongue. _Someone had locked his charge in this hellish place and LEFT him to die._

How could humans be--he knew they could be cruel, but this! He wasn’t sure which was worse for Virgil, nearly freezing to death because his roommates had neglected to ensure he was safe, or being locked in this place to be burned alive by a yet unknown party. But for Logan either option were currently unacceptable fates for his charge to suffer. 

“HELP!” Virgil hoarsely cried out, the banging on the door slowing. _“Please.”_ He added in a bare whisper. “ _Please…..._ someone _…..”_ A sniffle. “ _Help.”_

As a rule, demons and humans never interacted with each other without being summoned. As a rule, those who had charges to observe never revealed themselves to them. 

Those rules could go take a swim in the sewer as far as Logan was concerned. He’d already broken them once to save this human, he was beyond willing to do so again. 

He crouched, shoving his claws through the small gap. **“Stand back, Virgil.”** He commanded, trying and failing to keep the fury in his voice to a minimum. Virgil needed him to be the cool-headed one. Hunting down the person or people who’d done this to him and exacting his revenge would have to come later.

A sharp inhale from the other side of the door was Logan’s only indication Virgil had heard him before clammy fingertips gently touched his claws. _“Lo?”_ He whispered. 

Logan froze, hearts skipping two beats before he remembered to breathe again. He shouldn’t react so to the nickname his human had bestowed on him. And yet-- **“Yes.”** He managed to choke out. How had his charge managed to recognize---it should have been impossible! Virgil had barely been cognizant the last time he’d revealed himself.

A quiet sob. “You came.”

Such hope. Logan couldn’t refuse the quiet plea that came with those two words, even if he’d wanted to. **“Of course.”** He said, spreading his wings. **“Hold on.”** The door screeched as his claws dug in, the metal crumpling into a semi-circular hole. 

That wouldn’t be easy to explain away when someone found it.

Logan couldn’t have cared less as reddened sweat covered hands appeared in the opening followed quickly by the rest of his charge as Virgil shimmied through the gap, and practically threw himself into Logan’s arms, burying his head against his chest. “ _Lo.”_

Such trust. Logan wrapped his wings around Virgil, holding him close, careful to not puncture the human’s delicate skin in the process. “ **I got you. I g** ot you.” He soothed, running gentle claws through his charge’s sweat dampened hair, doing his best to quickly draw extra heat away from Virgil into his own wings in order to cool him down without sending him into shock.

Logan would deal with the consequences of this...this particular action later. Once he ensured Virgil would suffer no further ill effects from this attempted murder. 

_Murder._ His chest rumbled with a suppressed roar of fury. The fact that any human would attempt this against his human without visible cause, because Logan was sure he would have seen if there was a threat to his charge in Virgil’s tangled thoughts each night, was despicable. 

His tail beat an angry staccato against the floor as he held Virgil close in his arms. He had to find these creatures masquerading as humans and tear them limb from limb. He had to--But no. He pushed his rising fury down with effort. 

Right now, Virgil needed him. Needed this comfort that other humans had failed to provide him.

“You’re safe now, Virgil.” He murmured, fighting to keep his voice soothing, to keep the growl out of his tone. No need to freak his human out further once he realized it was a demon who held him and not a real guardian. “I promise. You’re safe.” 

Revenge would have to come later, once Logan got the full story from him. And when he did? A soft growl left his lips as he ran his claws gently through the boy’s hair, wings holding him in a protective embrace. There would be hell to pay.


	3. DEAL

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> December Drabbles Day 14

He’d been staring at the pages of the book Virgil had brought for him for hours now, not taking in a single word written there. 

How could he when his charge was _late._

Logan tsked, tail tapping a staccato against the bed frame as he flipped the book shut, turning his head to glare at the door, doing his best to ignore the twisting in his chest the--the _worry_ that he was feeling. 

Virgil could take care of himself. He knew that.

But after having to rescue his charge _twice_ from life or death situations. It was...stressful, far more stressful than it should ever be, to wait for him to come back home from class. Especially since it was easily becoming clear that despite his craving for a fresh start, despite the fact that Logan had gone out and handily _taken care of_ the six people responsible for nearly cooking his human in the boiler room, that Virgil still was not happy here.

Logan paused, tilting his head as he felt the first threads of the familiar thundercloud approaching. _Finally._ He relaxed when the bedroom door swung open, a black and purple backpack dropping to the floor a second later with a muted thud.

If it weren’t for the fact that he was trying to stick to the very last shreds of the rules of conduct between demon and human where he wouldn’t reveal himself unless Virgil called for him, Logan would have been out from under the bed in a flash demanding to know where in the world his charge had been and _why_ he was only getting home now when Logan knew the boy had finished classes before lunch and had a mountain of unfinished final term papers to complete and--

Virgil dropped to his knees next to the bed, a purple blanket pooling at his feet. “Scoot over.” He said, not giving Logan a chance to react before shoving his way under the bed.

“Wha--WHY?!” He choked out in surprise. This wasn’t---Virgil had never indicated an interest in visiting him under here before. 

Yet as soon as he caught sight of his tear streaked face, Logan found himself automatically lifting one wing and shifting his position to hold out an arm so he could slip underneath, a hot spike of anger rising in his chest. Virgil didn’t cry. He didn’t--What had happened to his dark and broody charge?

Virgil didn’t hesitate, ducking under both wing and arm to curl up into his chest, his soft hair tickling Logan’s chin as the boy choked back a sob, clinging to him. “Ju--just hold me for a minute, okay?” He whispered.

Logan lowered his wing, easily hiding him from view as he tightened his grip around him, holding Virgil close as he ran gentle claws through his hair. “Of course.” He said, careful to keep his voice from echoing. 

He frowned up at the pitch black cloud that hung like an anvil over Virgil’s head, catching only glimpses of the past four hours of torture his charge had been through. Glimpses because Virgil’s thoughts were being slippery, his human not wanting him to know exactly what had gone wrong. Annoying that. He shouldn’t have admitted to being able to see and influence the boy’s thoughts. “You’re safe here.” He whispered, fighting the fury rising within him as Virgil broke down, hot tears dripping onto his chest. 

“I-I know. I ju-just--” He shuddered. “I hate this place.” 

Logan blinked. Huh? How was that--just this morning his charge had once again shrugged off the light meddling that he’d done to the tangle of thoughts over his head to try and convince him to leave! Yet Virgil had been firm in stating that he was fine here. 

Obviously he wasn’t doing so fine if he hated being here. 

Logan ran his claws through Virgil’s hair, observing those twisting thoughts with no intention of meddling at the moment. 

No, he was seeking to understand why the sudden change of heart when _nothing_ he had suggested had worked. “We both do. Why do you think I’ve been trying to convince you to leave?” The cold for one was getting tiresome. Spring should be bringing warmer temperatures and yet up here in the north it hardly felt like they’d come out of winter at all.

“I just--” The dark cloud over his head seemed to grow darker. “I just...wanted it to change you know? How can I be a thousand miles away from my old life, and yet _everyone_ here still treats me like I’m the scum of the earth? I just--I just...wish someone here besides you would _like_ me. You know? Where I could just--relax and not constantly be worrying if I’m secretly hated and they’re gonna try and--and--”

“Lock you in the janitor’s closet?” Logan asked, his chest rumbling with a suppressed growl as he finally found the thread leading to the event that Virgil had been trying to hide from him.

Even with him drastically reducing his meddling with Virgil’s thoughts, it seemed like his charge really couldn’t catch a break here. Especially if this--this _freshman hazing_ kept up. Even if Virgil kept insisting that it was _nothing_ and that his... _peers’_ …antics should stay unreported to the police--not that that hadn’t stopped Logan from going off and enacting his own little revenge on the people that had threatened his human’s life--it would only be a matter of time before he would need to guard his charge twenty-four seven to keep him safe. To keep him _alive._

That was no way for a human to live. A demon’s guardianship was hardly a _good_ guardianship after all.

Virgil gave a bitter laugh, thoughts swirling, giving Logan glimpses of the faces of the _new_ people torturing his charge. 

It was a bittersweet realization that. Sure he was proud his ability to terrorize others hadn’t been dulled with this... _softening_ towards this one particular human, but if getting rid of the one batch of rotten eggs only encouraged _another group_ to take up the calling to make Virgil’s life miserable---

“They took my backpack this time.” He whispered, resting his head against Logan’s chest. “I had to MacGyver a way to melt the hinges off the door with chemicals from the closet before I could escape. Then it took me another hour to track down where they’d thrown my bag--at least I found it.” 

Was that supposed to be reassuring? That this time, he’d managed to get free by himself? If it was...it didn’t make Logan feel any better. Not when it left his charge in tears. 

Not when it left him wondering what would have happened if Virgil hadn’t managed to _MacGyver-_ whatever that meant- his way out of his predicament. Just how long would it have been before Logan would have realized he wasn’t coming back? That he needed _help?_ It just--that ache that--that _worry_ in his chest only grew stronger at the thought. 

Honestly, he didn’t understand most human devices, but if he needed to obtain a freaking _cell phone_ and enchant it so that Virgil would always be able to contact him he would. The hassle would be worth it if it meant his charge would remain safe. That at the _first_ sign of trouble Virgil could call for help and immediately receive it.

Better than leaving him wondering if Logan would find him in time. If he’d--- He exhaled. “I know it won’t mean much coming from me.” He whispered, committing to memory the faces of the people he needed to go _take care of_ next _,_ all too aware of how much he, himself, had contributed to his charge’s woes while here. “But you don’t deserve this.”

Virgil let out a shaky breath, the dark cloud swirling over his head shifting to a lighter grey as he looked up meeting Logan’s slitted eyes. “I want to make a deal.” 

He blinked, ignoring how his hearts leapt at the words every demon craved to hear at the unexpected phrase. “No you don’t.” 

Virgil set his jaw, eyes unwavering. “I do.”

Logan frowned, fighting the desire to break eye contact to see what the twisting threads of thought were leading to. To find out _why_ Virgil was requesting this _now._ No, it was best to hear it straight from the human himself. 

He let out a slow breath. Knowing his charge, his reasoning would be convoluted and yet still make perfect sense. “I’m willing to hear you out, but I do not agree to agree to anything beyond that. You’ve already dealt with enough trouble in your life without adding a _demonic deal_ to it.” 

Virgil gave a wobbly smirk, hardly fazed as he tapped Logan’s chest with a single finger. “Your side.” He said. “You want me to move elsewhere. Want me to go to a different school. Someplace warmer. _Safer._ ” 

Logan gave a slow nod. “Yes?” Though wasn’t this deal supposed to be about what the _human_ wanted to get instead of the _demon?_

“Then I’ll agree to moving. Even let you pick the school and the place I’ll stay at _IF.”_ He stressed the word again tapping Logan’s chest. “You agree to three things first.” 

Three things in exchange for one of safety? Typical human. He narrowed his eyes, tail tapping against the floorboards. “And those are?” 

“One. You stop hiding under my bed like an overgrown dust bunny. Two. You become my roommate and go to the school you’ve chosen with me--don’t give me that look.” 

Logan growled, tail dancing back and forth against the wall. He would give out all the looks he wanted thank you very much. Because that was---okay being out from under the bed would be wonderful but be a roommate?! “I can’t _replace_ your need for human interaction and companionship, Virgil.”

Sure, it did make a nice loophole that his superiors couldn’t argue against because the human had requested his near-constant presence in this deal. But it couldn’t work. Demons and Humans weren’t meant to be _roommates._ It was hardly a _healthy_ relationship when Logan had the ability to manipulate Virgil’s thoughts! Plus! Figuring out an adequate human disguise to uphold all hours of the day in order to _go to school_ would be a nightmare and a half with the rituals and the charm work involved to hide his demonic looks. 

“Three.” Virgil continued, ignoring Logan’s outburst, the cloud above his head shifting closer to white as he grew more fond of how this deal was turning out. “You pick out our other roommate or roommates. Ones who _know_ you are a demon so you won’t have to disguise yourself when you’re home.” 

That was---huh. So he’d only have to look _human_ while in public? Logan tsked, claws carefully brushing Virgil’s tear streaked cheeks, his wings quivering with the urge to agree to this--this foolhardiness as his mind raced to find any downsides for his end of this deal. For any _loopholes_ to exploit despite him not wanting to do anything of the sort to Virgil. Not when his charge was finally _finally_ willing to move away from this awful place.

Except there was one problem. The humans.

“ _Most_ humans who willingly interact with demons are not the sort of individuals I would trust to room with you.” He said, shaking his head. His goal was to keep Virgil _safe._ Not set him up for further attempts on his life.

Virgil raised an eyebrow, eyes glinting. “I specifically said those who know _you_ are a demon, Lo. That doesn’t have to mean they’ve interacted with others.” 

Clever. “But _I_ don’t _interact_ with other humans!” If he hadn’t broken the rules, Virgil would never be having this conversation with him in the first place because he wouldn’t know Logan existed. “ _Demons_ don’t interact with humans unless they are summoned. How am I--!”

“ _I_ never summoned you though. And yet here we are.” 

Logan had to look away at that. Avoid staring at the positively smug face his charge was giving him. “That’s different.” He finally muttered. Most demons didn’t _care_ what happened to the humans they dealt with. Logan was an outlier in that sense. Sent to lurk under a bed as _punishment_ and instead found that he _liked it_ even if Virgil’s stubborn nature drove him up the wall most of the time. 

“Different because you were hiding under my bed for who knows how long?” 

He grimaced. It hadn’t even been a year yet. Not that long at all in human terms. “In a way.” 

He flinched as Virgil placed a palm against his cheek, turning his head back to face him. “You were the monster under my bed until you decided I needed a Guardian instead.” He said softly. “Why can’t you go find another human whose needs are similar to mine? Find someone we both can get along with. And once you do, I’ll move wherever you want me to for school. Those are my terms.” 

Logan hardly cared if another human _liked_ him. He was a demon. Humans were supposed to _fear_ his kind. But Virgil? His human needed a _good_ roommate. One that would _want_ to be around him, unlike Virgil’s current set that barely acknowledged his existence unless it was his turn to take out the trash. However, if he was out _hunting_ for this good roommate…that would mean--

“I can hardly be considered a Guardian if you’re left defenseless while I’m off searching who knows where for who knows how long for this hypothetical person!” Logan retorted. “You would have to allow me to establish a means to ensure you’re safe while I am gone or that you could summon me if you find yourself in danger before I would even consider--” 

“What sort of thing?” 

Logan frowned. Was the stress of _three_ near death attempts addling his charge’s mind? Perhaps the air underneath the bed was’t flowing properly--he shifted, teleporting them both onto Virgil’s bed where he could have this conversation in a more proper format. After all, humans didn’t usually make deals _under_ their beds. Though it probably was too much to expect his charge to draw a sigil on the floor. Not if he wanted his deposit back. 

He kept a wing securely around Virgil as the human adjusted his position to rest more comfortably against him, a move that _should_ be more counter-intuitive despite Logan’s proclamations of keeping him safe. There was too much trust here. Virgil had hardly done more than sharply inhale at them suddenly appearing on top of his bed.

“So?” He asked once he was comfortable, fingers brushing against the inside of Logan’s wing. “What sort of thing were you thinking?” 

Logan shrugged a shoulder, trying to not focus on how _relaxed_ Virgil was with him. “...I was considering a cell phone.” 

The laugh his charge let out shouldn’t make his hearts flutter so.

Virgil grinned, shaking his head, the storm cloud above him glittering brightly despite it’s shifting state. “That’s so... _human,_ Lo. But what if it dies? What if I get mine taken away? They’re hardly reliable despite how much I use mine. Isn’t there a sort of…” He waved a hand around. “Sigil or spell or mark? Something that you can place on me?” 

Yes. But--

Before he could speak his charge ducked out from under his wing, grabbing at his backpack on the floor and digging into it. “I could draw something on me.” He offered, pulling out a pen. “And then you enchant it or whatever to--are you okay?”

That was---ha. Logan swallowed, wings shifting back as he looked his human in the eyes. “That is...it’s not a light commitment to make, Virgil.” He finally answered. “You shouldn’t allow any demon, let alone me--” Despite how much he desperately wanted it. It would be so much _easier_ to ensure he could protect Virgil than using a cell phone. “--to mark you so. I doubt you want a permanent connection to me and a sigil once placed on living flesh cannot easily be removed.” 

Virgil tapped his pen against his lips, tilting his head as he silently studied Logan. 

His tail twisted at the scrutiny. “It’s too much of a risk.” He repeated, holding his hands palm up. “You have no guarantee that I will remain a... _Guardian_ to you.” Though at this point he couldn’t see him being anything else. “I am a _Demon_. It’s not in our nature to--”

He cut off as Virgil reached out, resting his hands in Logan’s clawed ones, gently squeezing them. “Lo.” 

His hearts skipped a beat at the nickname. Gah. If Virgil ever figured out how being called _Lo_ truly affected him, far more than any deal would, he would be completely done for--he flinched, inhaling sharply as a purplish glow appeared, covering both of their hands as his charge gave a small smirk. 

“You’ve saved my life twice now.” He said softly, leaning forward, unfazed by the glow. 

Though of course Virgil would have no idea that this wasn’t normal, not when Logan hadn’t done anything! 

“That’s hardly a demon’s nature now is it? To save someone? Someone who made no deal to gain such protection?” 

….No. It _wasn’t_ normal. He knew that. He-- Logan made a sound in his throat as the purplish glow shifted between them winding like a ribbon around their wrists. He eyed it warily, it was a sign, despite the fact that the glowing ribbon should be _red_ instead of purple, that a deal was being struck though Logan had made no active attempt to initiate one. Hadn’t _wanted-_ -

“You’re no ordinary demon, Lo.” 

No...he wasn’t much like the others was he? Interacting with humans... _a human_...with _Virgil_ willingly without being compelled to. To _want_ to protect his charge, seeking to help him instead of...well...continuing to make him suffer. 

“If you don’t want the mark on me to be permanent then make it temporary.” Virgil said, maintaining eye contact. “Make it last as long as you need it to. But I know you know you want to know I’m okay. Is this not a good way to go about it?” 

His breath caught in his throat. There was too much trust in him here. Far too much. Virgil didn’t know what he was getting into. He couldn’t--it wasn’t _safe._ “I don’t--” Logan swallowed, fingers trembling in Virgil’s hands as the ribbon pulsed around them. “A _demonic deal_ is _never_ safe.” He couldn’t risk his charge like this. _Something_ would go wrong. It wasn’t worth it. “I don’t want to make this type of deal. _Any_ deal with you.” He whispered, wings fluttering with heat as he broke eye contact, bowing his head to his charge. 

“Lo?” Virgil adjusted his grip, squeezing his hands. 

He shuddered, eyes burning despite his inability to shed tears, his hearts pounding like the drums of war as he clung to those hands, careful always careful so that his claws wouldn’t pierce his delicate flesh, wouldn’t draw blood to seal whatever deal this purple ribbon was trying to instigate. He couldn’t _hurt_ him. 

“It’s not proper.” He said softly. “A demon shouldn’t care about this. A demon would just say yes. But I can’t. Because I do. _I care._ I just want you safe, Virgil. Protected. Happy. A deal won’t-- I can’t---a _demon can’t_ \--” 

“Perhaps.” Virgil tilted his head, peering up into Logan’s slitted eyes. “You should stop thinking of yourself as a demon then.”

He blinked, wings drawing back as the purple ribbon pulsed. “What?” But that--that’s _what he was_ . Sure, he wasn’t _acting_ like one currently, but no one would look at him and think he was anything else.

“Well...you’ve already said it yourself, haven’t you? Starting back when I nearly froze to death. What you really are.” 

He’d said a lot of--Wait. Logan looked up, barely able to breathe from how tight his chest felt. “You...remember that time?” 

Virgil shook his head. “Not all of it. But I do remember one thing, Lo.” He grinned, eyes glittering as the purple ribbon flashed a brilliant indigo, the bright warm light washing over Logan before he could blink. 

“You’re a _Guardian_. _My_ Guardian.”


End file.
